Advice please! I want to employ someone ...

[MrsMcEnroe]

Hello, are there any experts out there who could give me a quick idiot-proof guide please? I need to employ someone to work in my shop part-time, one day per week (6 hours max in one go) plus ad-hoc hours here and there, by mutual agreement.

I have googled but cannot find an online guide that tells me which laws I need to comply with! I know that I need to comply with the H&S at Work Act(s) but not sure which bits are relevant? Are they published somewhere? And I know that I need EL insurance, and my accountant will sort out the tax and payslips, but do I need to pay employer's NI and what else do I need to do? Please can somebody help me? Thank you!

Liability insurance for sure. You'll pay their NI contributions... the only other thing that I would do would be to get a contract written up stipulating hours/grievance procedures/ etc.

More info here link

Ah thank you, that link is great. Bloody hell, pensions - I thought I might have to do that. I'm in a catch 22 situation - I can't really afford to hire someone but I can't afford not to either .... But if I have to pay all the additional costs I honestly don't think I'll be able to feed my DC! Argh. It might be cheaper for me to pay for more childcare and do more hours at the shop myself at this rate....
Do I have to pay pension contributions even if its not their main job? Does anyone know? (Please note I am not being a Scrooge here, I am just 6 months into a new business, with virtually no profit yet!)

It will almost certainly be cheaper to pay for more childcare, so if that is an option do that.

Thanks flowery, I'm quite sad about this because I really want to take on a staff member - not just to give me a day off but also to gain another person's perspective and input into the business ... I shall have to try to put a value on that additional input I guess!

Agree with flowery - much cheaper to get more Childcare. Employment legislation is increasingly complex and a minefield

I've just posted a message on Netmums asking for more childcare!

I would try and find other perspectives elsewhere anyway tbh, as you've no way of knowing whether someone you hire for a few hours a week is going to be that valuable from that point of view.

As its a shop it's difficult but to give you more time are there aspects of the business you could outsource? Bookkeeping, admin stuff, marketing?

I don't employ anyone directly but have a virtual assistant, marketing specialist, accountant, self-employed business manager type, website designer and other HR specialists all working as part of my business.

I get lots of people I can talk to about the business, but can use people very little or a lot depending on my needs, and can walk away if necessary.

I also network, in person and online. If you're in the shop 6 days a week that might be difficult but it's incredibly valuable I find.

Taking on staff is a great thing to do and it sounds like you will need to soon, but it's not fair to either party do it unless and until you've got a very realistic picture of all the costs and requirements first.

I reckon ball park it costs at least 1.5 times salary to employ someone. Probably more.

Could you get an intern for free for a few weeks?

Depending on the type of business you might find someone who is willing to do unpaid work experience for, say, 12 weeks (one day a week) in order to enhance their own CV. They'd still have plenty of time to job hunt or study. You could pay for travel and lunch for them.

Yes all good ideas, thanks both of you sorry for brevity, it's edging towards DCs' bedtime...!

Something to think about is if it's only 6 hours a week the salary may be under ni contribution rates. It's also worth looking at the provision of pensions as they may not be an eligible employee by means of their salary being under the qualifying amount. If this is the case and they want to be in a scheme I believe you won't need to contribute.